Route 30 reopens after sinkhole repairs

Crews had until 6 a.m. Monday to finish the work

Traffic coming off Kreutz Creek Road onto westbound Rt. 462 backed up Saturday through the detour from Route 30 while work was conducted on a sinkhole (Gordon Rago -- York Daily Record/Sunday News)

Update, 8:05 p.m. Sunday

Route 30 westbound reopened shortly before 8 p.m. after weekend work to repair a sinkhole, according to Mike Crochunis, a spokesperson for hte Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.

The westbound lanes of the road were closed beginning Friday evening and traffic was detoured onto Route 462. Crochunis said the work to repair the sinkhole is complete.

The work was part of a project to repair and resurface about 4.4 miles of Route 30, and that project continues. The work should now shift to a nighttime schedule, Crochunis said.

Reported earlier

The repair of a sinkhole in the westbound lanes of Route 30 in Hellam Township caused major traffic congestion Saturday on the highway as well as Route 462.

The work, which started Friday evening, is expected to be completed by Sunday night, said Mike Crochunis, a spokesman for the state Department of Transportation. Crews have until 6 a.m. Monday, if needed, to reopen the road.

A few crashes were reported, according to Hellam Township Police and a firefighter.

Fire crews responded to a two-vehicle crash at 9:46 a.m. Saturday on the eastbound off-ramp of Route 30 at Kreutz Creek Road, Hellam Fire Company Firefighter Don Garrett said. One vehicle had a sign stuck underneath it, and the second sustained front-end damage.

The crash, which Garrett said was a direct result of the heavy traffic in the area, had no injuries.

Kinsley Contruction Inc. has a contract with PennDOT to repair a 4.4-mile section of westbound Route 30 between North Hills Road and the bridge near the Shoe House Road overpass, according to a news release.

The ability for crews to fill the sinkhole on a weekend will be good in the long run, Crochunis said.

He did not have a sense of how large the sinkhole is, but said construction crews are working on a permanent fix to the sinkhole, which has caused problems over the last few years.

"When Kinsley started its contract this spring, they were out there to monitor the depression growing in the area of Shoe House Road," Crochunis said. "And then they were able to schedule their work quickly."

Crews will be working to plug the throat of the sinkhole where groundwater has found a way to cause a depression, Crochunis said.

"We're in an area that's prone to [sinkholes]," Crochunis said. "We're fortunate to have a contractor get in there."